Drag You Down
by Happymystery12
Summary: "That dream again..." In a rare time of peace and quiet, Shadow and Sonic spend a lot of time together. A recurring dream Shadow can't articulate begins to plague his mind more and more, and he finally tells someone about it when it begins to change.
1. That Dream

Shadow opened his eyes, the last echoes of a guttural scream bouncing in his mind as the morning sunlight blinded him.

 _Tuesday,_ he thought immediately. What was so important about Tuesday. _Tuesday, Tuesday, Tuesday..._

"Shit." Shadow rubbed his face with one hand and sat up. He snatched his phone off the bedside table and unlocked it.

Sonic had texted him, _Still coming today?_

Shadow texted back with a simple, _yeah,_ before he got out of bed. He showered quickly, and got his gloves and shoes on. Just before heading out, he grabbed his bag and his headset. He slipped the headset around his neck and stuck the earbuds in his ears, locked his door, and took off.

Sonic was not a patient guy. Far from it; his speed could take him from here to fifty miles away and back in minutes, yet here he was. Just waiting. He glanced at his phone to check the time. _9:37 a.m._ Sonic stuck his phone back in his bag and leaned back against the pole he stood in front of, staring off at the line of stores across the street. _If Shadow could just hurry up..._

Speak of the devil and he appears, Sonic supposed, as he caught Shadow's figure approaching from his right.

Shadow clicked a button on his headset and took out the earbuds. "Hello, Sonic." There were faint circles under his eyes, and he looked like he had just rolled out of bed.

"You feeling okay, buddy?" Sonic eyed his face. "You look tired. Did you get any sleep at all last night?"

Sonic's questioning only grated on Shadow. "I'm fine," he said firmly. "And don't call me your buddy."

Sonic brushed off Shadow's palpable irritation. With a tilt of his head, he urged Shadow to follow him, and the two took off running. They followed the train tracks out to the Mystic Ruins, planning to go through a well-trodden path in the jungle, one they always took on their occasional runs together.

The fresh air energized Shadow, and within moments, he wasn't looking so out of it. He was silent, seeming focused. When Sonic looked at him, opening his mouth, he saw Shadow had the earbuds in his ears and was lip singing along to whatever he was listening to. Something intense, Sonic could tell, as Shadow's face changed repeatedly, from pained-looking to confident to sad, all over the place. Seeing Shadow so animated made Sonic smile. _Might have to take Shadow's phone and look through his music sometime,_ he thought to himself as he turned his attention back to their route.

Heavy bass, Japanese instruments, and electronic voices pulsed in Shadow's head. He shut out everything but the music and the route. For a moment, he even forgot Sonic was running alongside him. He didn't think. He didn't feel. All that was around was his music and his footsteps.

When they reached the cart tracks that would lead to the cliff with the ladder, they came to a stop. Shadow paused his music and took out one earbud. He took his phone and looked at the time. _10:03 a.m._

Sonic took a deep breath, taking in the fresh mountain air. "So," he said, grabbing Shadow's attention, "are we going together or splitting up this time?" He put his hands behind his head, grinning widely.

Shadow took an armband out of his bag and slipped his phone into it. "Let's split up. You take the left path, I'll take the right." He closed the holder of the band and slipped it onto his left forearm.

"'Kay." Sonic stretched his arms back. "Ready whenever you are."

The two left their bags in a small hiding place in one wall of the short tunnel that led out to the jungle. The darkness of the tunnel was illuminated only by Shadow's phone; he was flipping through his music as they walked, trying to find something he found suitable.

Sonic glanced at the screen once Shadow pulled his hand away from it. _DAGames- Left Behind,_ it read. Shadow put the free earbud in his ear, surrounding himself again with music.

The screen shut off as they came out into the sunlight. The two hedgehogs stood on the cliff, the jungle below them. Off in the distance, they could see a tower with a red line of railway tunnel extending from it. One of Eggman's defunct bases, Shadow remembered Sonic had told him. And it looked like it, with a gigantic marking of the Doctor's insignia plastered on it.

"Hey, Shadow?" Sonic tapped Shadow's shoulder.

Sonic's sudden action roused Shadow from his train of thought. He paused his music and looked at the blue hero. "What?"

"What kind of music do you like to listen to?" A bright smile seemed glued to Sonic's face. He seemed genuinely curious.

"Stuff I find that just has some meaning to me." Shadow reached to hit play.

"Like what?"

Shadow huffed. He turned off his headset and turned up the volume of his phone's speaker. He looked through his music, and then picked one. _Kamui Gakupo- Specimen Girl._

Even with Sonic's rusty understanding of Japanese, he understood enough for the song to send a chill through him. He stood silent as the two listened.

After about two minutes, Shadow paused it and turned his headset on again. "Ready?"

Sonic had to pull himself from his mental translating. After a moment of silence, he nodded. "Yeah."

The two descended the ladder down into the jungle and turned to the immediately fork in the road. Shadow played his music and took off down the right-hand path.

Sonic just stood there. _Stuff I find that just has some meaning to me._ That only made Sonic's stomach turn. _Why stuff like_ that, _though?_ He shook his head and started down the left-hand path.

Running quickly made him forget the disgusting song. He moved quickly, dodging plants that reached in the path and ducking over low-hanging branches. He didn't run to his full capacity, not even close, preferring to take his time and lose himself in the denseness around him. Though he knew the jungle well enough to maneuver it with his eyes closed, Sonic still never got bored running here.

His freeform route brought him to the center, to the ruins that stood in a clearing. He stopped and took a deep breath, just staring at the ruins. His mind wandered, finding its way to Tikal and Chaos. Sonic just stood still, letting himself stand still and remember.

Shadow sat on the riverbank and paused his music. As he stared at the moving water, he let his mind go blank. As noisy as the jungle was, it was also calming. Shadow almost felt isolated, in a good way. Being alone like this, in solitude like this, away from the world, was something he could use once in a while. _No wonder Sonic likes coming here so much,_ he mused as he sat back, looking up to the canopy.

Small bits of green-tinted sunlight filtered through the thick ceiling of leaves. The bubbling of the river and the calls of cicadas made for soothing white noise, and soon, Shadow was leaning back against a tree trunk, asleep.

 _It's raining, and the sun is shining. In the distance, I can see a group beneath a tree._

 _A wedding. It's a wedding. The bride is dressed in white, and they all wear masks._

 _They're dancing, gracefully spinning and jumping to music only they seem to hear._

 _I'm going closer, and closer. I want to dance with them. I want to be like them._

 _One removes his mask. I... scream when I see his face. His twisted, rotting face._

Sonic found Shadow asleep next to the river, rays of sunlight falling on him. As he approached the sleeping hedgehog, Shadow's eyes shot open.

Once Shadow's vision focused and he realized he was still in the jungle, he sighed. "That dream again," he muttered to himself.

"I've been looking for you." Sonic sat next to Shadow.

Shadow looked at the time. _12:49 p.m._ He stood. "We should be heading back." He looked down at Sonic.

The hero stood, too, and they started walking back towards the cliff, Sonic leading the way. After a long period of silence, Sonic looked over his shoulder at Shadow. "You said, 'that dream again.' What was that about?"

Shadow had been looking at the river and occasionally glancing at Sonic, but now he looked right at him. Shadow hesitated before he answered. "A recurring dream."

"About her?" Sonic stopped. He turned around to face Shadow. That look of pity just... pissed Shadow off. He hated looking at that face.

"No," he answered, an edge in his voice. _Hell no._ "Quit looking at me like that," he added. "It wasn't about Maria."

Sonic turned his attention back to the path. Knowing Shadow was pissed, he tried changing the subject. "So, uh... Do you want to come with me to Tails' place later?" At first, he took Shadow's immediately silence as a definite _no,_ but Shadow surprised him.

"I may as well. I have nothing better to do today."

Sonic looked over his shoulder, but saw Shadow had returned his gaze to the river. Neither spoke the rest of the way back to the cliff.


	2. Cards

Shadow and Sonic agreed to split up for lunch and meet back at the Mystic Ruins train station at two o'clock to head to Tails' house. Sonic stared as Shadow walked away with his earbuds in his ears. _"That dream again," he said. Wonder what it was._ Sonic shrugged off his curiosity and headed off into the city to grab lunch.

He went to a little hole in the wall restaurant that had the best chili dogs—because of the best chili—in town. Their buns were homemade, their hot dogs cooked on a fiery grill, and their chili... divine. Sonic went there so often the owners of the little place once joked he was their main source of income. He had been the one to get their struggling business off the ground, as he recommended it to anyone he saw that was looking for good food.

"Your usual, Sonic?" the manager asked as he walked in. The green mouse, standing at the counter, had her long hair dyed silver, as that was what was in right now. It was tied back in a tight ponytail, and she wore an apron over her yellow uniform shirt and blue jeans.

"You know it, Lyla." Sonic paid, having memorized the price by now. He stepped back from the counter to let up the person who had come in behind him. As he waited for his food, his thoughts wandered all over the place. What was Tails up to today? Was Amy looking for Sonic (again. As usual.)?

His train of thought was derailed when his order was called. He grabbed the food and walked out; walking and eating would mean going to Tails' faster.

Shadow, meanwhile, had met up with Rouge in the city. As the two walked to a local restaurant, Rouge on and on about some guy she was seeing. Shadow listened, just taking in her words and offering the occasional comment.

"So, Shadow," Rouge said suddenly as they walked into the restaurant, "you got any kind of a love life lately?"

"Stupid question," Shadow answered as they were led to a table. "No, I don't." He sat down.

Rouge sat across from him. "No dates? One night stands? Anything?"

"Nothing at all."

"Can I get you two anything?" the skinny human waiter asked them. He smiled brightly.

"Just water," both of them answered.

"Alright, I'll have that back for you in just a few minutes." Their waiter walked away.

"Nothing at all, huh?" Rouge drummed her fingers on the table. "But why?"

Shadow just ignored her question, picking up his menu. He scanned through it, though he planned on ordering the simple pasta meal he always got here.

The waiter stopped to turn up the stereo on his way back to their table. A piano piece was playing, one that was slow and sweet and almost sad. He brought their glasses of water. "Two waters. Are you two ready to order?"

"Yes." Rouge nodded. "I'll have the caesar salad."

"Chicken alfredo." Shadow handed his menu back, and Rouge did the same.

"Alright, those will be out soon." The waiter took the menu and walked away.

Silence. Shadow looked around the restaurant, noticing how quiet it was. There were only two other tables filled.

"You never answered my question." Rouge leaned forward a bit. "Why don't you go out with people?"

"No interest." Shadow sat back. "That's it."

Rouge just stared at him. Finally, she gave up, letting the matter drop.

When Shadow and Sonic got to Tails' lab after their lunches, they saw Amy was there, sitting away from Tails at a small table. She was shuffling a deck of cards.

"Tarot cards again, Amy?" Sonic grinned when he saw the cards. "Is that a new deck you got?"

Amy set the deck down and looked up. "Yeah. Want me to read for you?"

Shadow watched as Sonic practically bounced over to Amy and sat at one of the two chairs across from her. He followed and sat next to Sonic.

"Shadow, do you know anything about the Tarot?" Amy looked at him as she picked up the deck.

"I've read a bit about it." Shadow saw a card drop from the deck as Amy shuffled.

It was of the major arcana. VI The Lovers. Amy picked the card up and slipped it back into the deck."Have you ever had your cards read before?"

"No. What did that card mean?"

"The Lovers? Depends on the reading." Amy stopped shuffling. "Unless it's given bad aspects by other cards, it stands for ultimate, unbreakable love." Her gaze shifted to Sonic and a smile came to her face.

Sonic lowered his eyes. _Knock it off,_ he thought, but he didn't say anything.

"Hm." Shadow sat back slightly.

Amy held out the deck to him. "I'm going to read for you. Shuffle."

Shadow silently took the cards, and he could immediately feel the soothing energy that resonated from them. "So, what can you tell from these in a reading?"

"Answer a question, reveal the past, tell the future..." Amy watched Shadow.

Shadow began shuffling the deck, his movements slow as he felt every card. _Chaos, these feel nice,_ he thought. Images flickered in his mind. A woman dressed all in white, dancing in spiritual ecstasy. A serious-looking man holding a cup, a sword, a coin, and a wand. A man clad in blue sitting on a throne. A woman in green and violet, holding a coin, a peacock standing behind her. Shadow stopped shuffling. "May I draw a few?"

"Sure, go ahead." Amy nodded, leaning on the table as she watched Shadow.

Sonic watched as Shadow set down the deck. The black hedgehog drew five cards, one at a time, from the top of the deck. He laid them out in a line face down. Sonic rested his chin in his hand. "Flip 'em over."

Shadow shot Sonic a look, but did turn them over. Left to right, they were the Four of Wands, Six of Swords, IV The Emperor, Seven of Swords, and II The High Priestess. His eyes immediately fell on the High Priestess, depicting a woman dressed in white, dancing, clearly enjoying herself against a dark sky.

Amy leaned in more to look at the cards. She was silent for a long time, just staring at them, looking at each one.

Shadow looked at Sonic, raising an eye ridge. Sonic just watched Amy. "So what do they say, Ames?"

"From the cards Shadow pulled," Amy started finally, "it fits with what's been going on lately. We're at peace, haven't heard from Eggman for months." She picked up the Seven of Swords. "But, we do have to keep our guard up, because something bad is brewing behind the scenes." She put it back down. "So we can't just look at the peace. We also have to be prepared and on guard, anticipating." She tapped the High Priestess. "Anything can happen. Eggman could be planning something right under our noses." She scooped up the five cards and slipped them in random places in the deck. "Shuffle again. I'm drawing this time, to read for you."

Shadow took the deck and began to shuffle again. His movements were quicker this time as he got used to the feel of the deck.

"I'm going to pull three cards to reveal something about your past," Amy told him as she watched him. She folded her hands in her lap. "And I want you to tell me how accurate it is."

Sonic watched Shadow's hands, fascinated by the other's fluidity with the deck. Shadow's right hand held the deck, and his left pluck out and moved parts of it. Finally, he cut the deck, piled it back together, and handed it back to Amy. "Alright," Shadow said, "draw."

Amy set the deck down and drew three cards. She set them down and then flipped them over. XXI The World, VII The Chariot, and the Four of Cups. "Infinite opportunity. Victory, triumph. Self-discipline. Inner conflict." That struck a chord with Shadow, and he frowned. More deeply than usual, anyway. "Indifference, apathy."

Sonic looked at Shadow. "Almost sounds like you after you woke up the first time, huh?" He noticed the look of suspicion on Shadow's face.

"And you got all that from three cards." Shadow raised his eyes to look at Amy.

"Yup." Amy nodded. She returned the reading into the deck and shuffled it away. "The cards can tell a lot. And I don't even do reversals."

"Reversals?"

"It's when a card is upside down. It changes the meaning," Sonic chimed in, "basically making it the opposite of the actual meaning of a card."

Two cards fell from the deck. The Two of Cups and the King of Wands. Shadow put a hand on them before Amy could pick them up. "What about these?"

Amy smiled. Her gaze fell on Sonic again. "Well, the Two of Cups has to do with relationships. The Two takes the love energy from the Ace and manifests it into a growing relationship. Depending on the context, that could mean anything from the start of a relationship, to marriage, to children. And then Kings always represent men. A King of Wands is enthusiastic and never wants to sit still. He is always doing something new, and he gets bored easily. But, some Kings of this suit have... egos. Big egos."

 _Sonic. That sounds like Sonic,_ Shadow thought as he pulled his hand away. As silly as telling fortunes with cards sounded, the fact that Amy had told Shadow something that felt so personal from just a couple cards had gotten him interested.

"Big egos? What's that supposed to mean, Amy?" Sonic stared at her.

"Oh, nothing." She laughed. "So, Sonic, about your reading. Anything in particular you want to know?"

Sonic hesitated. He took a breath, drumming his fingers on the table. "Well, there's something I've been thinking of doing for a long time, and I want to know whether it's a good idea to do it. Can you answer that without specifics?"

"I'm sure I can." Amy handed the deck to Sonic.

Sonic sat back, crossing his legs as he started shuffling. He swirled his real question in his mind: _Should I tell him?_ He shuffled more slowly than Shadow had, just stewing the question in hopes that he would get a decent answer.

Once he handed the cards back to Amy, she quickly shuffled and cut them, then set the deck down. "I'm going to draw five in a Cross of Truth spread." She then drew. The first card, she placed closest to her. "This is the basis of the situation." The second, she placed above it. "This is your desire." The third was set to the right of the second one. "This is what will help you." The fourth was set left of the second. "This is what will oppose you." The final card was above the second. "And this is the result."

She flipped them over. "In the basis, we have the Devil, number fifteen of the major arcana. Remember that the word Satan means antagonizer. This card could mean letting go of addictions, or breaking out of a toxic situation. But it can also have to do with sexuality and passionate love, as the Devil image is co-opted from a god of sex.

"You desire a relationship, as the Two of Cups reveals. What will help you, the Seven of Wands tells us, is standing up for what you believe in. Sticking with your morals will make you desirable to the person you want. However, the Six of Cups tells us someone from your past will come back, and this could disrupt the growing relationship. This person might try to squeeze themselves in.

"Finally, we have the outcome." Amy smiled, picking up the Ace of Cups. "The Ace of Cups. With everything that has happened so far in this reading, it's safe to say the new beginning it symbolizes is the start of a new relationship with the person you desire. It'll be beautiful. It'll be sweet and passionate and euphoric to know that this person does indeed love you."

Sonic rested his chin in both hands, a big grin on his face as he stared at the cards. "Thanks, Amy. That means a lot to hear."

"So, I don't mean to _pry,_ but, who is the person you're thinking of?" Amy returned the cards to the deck. _It's me, it has to be me,_ she thought, confidence soaring in her as she thought this was finally her time. Finally, finally, Sonic could see how much she-

"Oh, just... just someone." Sonic ran a hand through his quills.

 _Ouch._ Amy's bravado was crushed. "Oh. Well, I hope it works out."

Tails finally spoke up from where he sat at one of the computers. "Sonic, when you're done with Amy and the cards, can you come over here, please?" He didn't look over, he just kept his eyes on the screen.

"Sure thing, buddy."


	3. Awakening

Tails kept his eyes on the screen. He had pulled up live footage from a drone he had sent over the ocean, and it was now trained on the old Egg Carrier. He zoomed in the footage, revealing there were functional robots walking around on the bridge.

Sonic got up from the table he was at and walked over. When he saw what was on the screen, his eyes narrowed. "You're seeing the same thing I'm seeing, yeah?"

"Yes." Tails nodded. "Eggman's doing something. But I don't know what."

Tails sat back, watching the footage the circling drone captured. The robots seemed to be just wandering aimlessly around. They weren't moving things, or walking on patrol routes, and none communicated with any other. They just walked in unsteady paths.

Shadow came over and watched with the other two. He raised an eye ridge as he noticed the random movements of Eggman's mechanical lackies. "It doesn't look like they're doing anything useful. They're just moving."

"Eggman's back there, that's for sure." Sonic reached over and zoomed in more. "But whatever he's doing, he just has those as a defense, just backup. Unless he knows I'm coming or already there, he won't have them patrolling. Right now they're just a way to scare people away, if anybody goes out that way." He got a good look at one. "And these aren't the models he originally used on the Egg Carrier. These are newer than that."

Shadow stared silently at the screen, crossing his arms. _Egg Carrier._ Sonic had told him about Chaos and the Egg Carrier. Chaos, the god-like creature who could obliterate everything with the power of the Chaos Emeralds, and who Eggman tried to use for such a purpose. They used Chaos' name like he was a god in everyday conversation, and Shadow had picked up that habit.

Sonic stepped back from the computer. "I'm going out there tonight. Whatever he's up to, it ain't happening."

Amy stood. "I'm going with you!"

Sonic turned his head, looking at her over his shoulder. "Remember the last time you went with me? You almost got me killed. Stay here." He turned his attention to Shadow. "Want to see the Egg Carrier in action for yourself?"

Shadow nodded. "When do we leave?"

Amy's face flushed red with embarrassment. Sonic was taking Shadow, but not _her_? How _dare_ he!

"Sunset, so Tails can at least see the runway. Tails, you're not landing. You're dropping us." Sonic looked at Tails, who closed out of the live footage.

Tails stood. "You should get ready. I'll go tune up the Tornado."

"Shadow, let's get some rest before we have to leave. Tails has a guest room or two." Sonic walked out of the lab.

Amy turned her gaze to Shadow. "You two aren't really going alone, are you?"

"We can handle ourselves just fine." Shadow left the lab, shutting the door behind him. He followed Sonic up to the main house and was pointed to one of the guest rooms.

Shadow walked in. The walls were painted in a dark violet with silvery baseboards. The bed was made with white sheets and a grey comforter, and the bedside table and dresser were made of the same dark wood. The floor beneath Shadow's feet was fluffy off-white carpet.

Shadow took off his shoes and socks and sat on the bed, turning on his headset. He slipped the earbuds in his ears and lay back against the pile of pillows behind him, moving one to be behind his head. He turned on some instrumental music, leaned his head back, and closed his eyes.

* * *

 _It's raining, and the sun is shining. In the distance, I can see a group beneath a tree._

 _A wedding. It's a wedding. The bride is dressed in white, and they all wear masks._

 _They stand still, staring my way. Why are they staring at me? What did I do?_

 _I'm walking towards them. They don't move. They're still staring at me._

 _I can hear the music now that always left them so giddy. It sounds upbeat and meaningless. The group just keeps staring._

 _The bride removes her mask, and her green eyes focus on me. Underneath the veil, her hair is dark brown. A smile comes to her face. "Do you remember me?" she asks._

 _Remember her? What is there to remember?_

" _Do you remember me?" she asks again. "Do you remember me?" She's repeating the question in a slow, monotonous voice that would otherwise draw my attention._

 _Her voice is repulsive. I want her to stop talking._

" _Do you remember me? Do you remember me? Do you remember me?"_

* * *

"Shadow?"

Shadow felt his shoulder being shaken, and it dragged him away from the dream. No scream echoed in his mind, but the dream had left his chest tight and his body tense. Shadow blinked, trying to force his mind into full wakefulness. Sonic had turned on the desk lamp that sat on the bedside table, and it shone a pale yellow light that illuminated the bed.

Shadow took a deep breath, painful as it was, and his body began to relax. He took out the earbuds and turned off his headset.

"You need to get ready to leave," Sonic said quietly.

"What time is it?"

"About 7:15." Sonic stepped back.

Shadow swung his legs off the bed and stood up. He grabbed his shoes and socks and put them on, his mind on the way his dream had changed. That dream had been the exact same almost every night for _months_. Why had it changed now?

Sonic walked out of the room, telling Shadow to meet him in the lab.

Shadow adjusted his shoes, then turned off his headset and set in on the bedside table. He didn't need it. He left the bedroom and went downstairs to Tails' lab.

Amy stood near the door Shadow came in through, just watching Sonic and Tails get ready. She was silent, not protesting or trying to butt in.

"You almost ready, Shadow?" Sonic looked at him.

"Whenever you are." Shadow approached the Tornado. The plane was the newer model, blue and slim. Behind the cockpit was a small space with two more seats.

"Now, when I fly over, it's going to be a 20-foot drop." Tails sat in the cockpit, checking to make sure everything was working right.

Sonic turned his head and looked over at Amy. "Hey, Ames? Can you pull three cards from your deck for me?"

Amy shuffled for a minute, then pulled three cards and fanned them out. "Five, Eight, and Ten of Swords." A dark, sorrowful look came to her face, and she looked at the two hedgehogs. "Be careful. Be really, really careful."

Sonic went to her. "What do they mean?"

"Deceit. Feeling trapped by your own perceptions. … The ending of a hard situation." Amy looked at the cards again. "... Mind games. I think Eggman's up to mind games." She slipped them back in, shuffled, and drew one more. XIX The Sun. "The Sun... The Sun. You two will be okay."

"Thanks, Amy. You be careful too, okay?"

"Yeah. Good luck." Amy slipped the Sun back into her deck and leaned back against the wall.

Sonic and Shadow hopped on the Tornado, and Tails got in the cockpit. The hangar door opened and the runway revealed itself from under the dirt.

 _Mind games,_ Sonic thought. He looked at Shadow, and relayed Amy's readings to him as Tails started up the plane.

"Sound like we better be ready for anything, then," Shadow said over the roar of the engine.

Sonic turned back and waved goodbye to Amy. And then, Tails took off.

Sonic took a deep breath. On the horizon, the setting sun cast hues of orange and pink against the darkening sky. The twilight air was cool, and the sounds of the ocean beneath the plane were grounding.

Shadow just stared out at the horizon, his eyes glazed with intent. While Sonic and Tails chatted, he was silent, unmoving. _The dream changed,_ he thought to himself. _Why? It's been the same for months. Why has it changed?_ He thought back to that bride in the dream. _"Do you remember me?" Remember her... No._

"Shadow?" Sonic looked at him. "Shadow!"

Shadow turned his head quickly.

"We're almost there. Get ready." Sonic readied himself to jump.

Shadow nodded and turned.

As Tails flew over the runway of the Egg Carrier, the two hedgehogs jumped. Before they even got close to the ground, they were surrounded.

* * *

 _I'm standing in a dark room. … Where am I?_

 _It smells like alcohol. Smells like a casino._

 _I can see a little now as my vision adjusts. There's an old table, with two folding metal chairs. On the table, there's a bottle of hard liquor and two small glasses. As I get closer, I can see the label. It's faded, but the alcohol percentage still states clearly: 49.5% alcohol._

" _Hello. I've been expecting you." Someone is in the room._

 _The person steps out of the shadows and sits at the table. "Come. Sit."_

 _I do, and I realize I'm wearing a dirty dress... maybe it was white once. "Where am I?"_

" _My realm," the thing across the table says. Its face is obscured, but it's wearing a dark brown kimono. "You probably don't remember me."_

" _Nope."_

 _The creature pours the alcohol into the two glasses and holds one out to me. "Cherry. You told me last time we met it was your new favorite."_

 _I take the glass and take a sip. Beyond the awful burn, there really is a taste of cherries._

" _Now, you've been here before, many times. Every time you awaken, I meet with you to prepare you." The creature downs its glass and set it down. "When you wake up from this... little nap, you'll remember all the things_ he _did to you."_

" _He? You mean Eggman?"_

 _The creature laughs, grating and bitter. "Oh, no, my dear, he is just a person you've happened to cross paths with. No, the man I am talking about is one you are undeniably tied with." It stands and pushes its chair in, then walks around to be behind me. "He's done unspeakable things to you, and you cursed him."_

 _I can't turn around. I just can't. "Who?"_

" _Think of a name."_

 _I start running through my mind. Tails, Knuckles... no. Espio? No. Vector?_ Chaos _no! "...Shadow?"_

 _The creature snaps its fingers. "Bingo."_

* * *

"Hmm... Very strange." Eggman stared at the footage on the screen.

One of his new inventions was able to recreate a subject's dreams by analyzing the brain's activity, and tracked all five senses, rendering what couldn't be seen or heard into live-updated descriptions on screen. He'd _planned_ on using it to find out Sonic's darkest secrets, find things he could use against the blasted blue rat. But this... this was odd.

He was, of course, seeing things from Sonic's point of view.

Eggman sat down and leaned back against the back of the chair. "This doesn't make sense." He changed the footage from Sonic's dream to Shadow's.

 _I'm in a dark room. All I can smell is blood._

 _In front of me is a woman. Her hair, dark brown, is matted and falls limply over her shoulders. Beneath deep violet swelling, her eyes are a bright green. She's nude, and covered in open, festering wounds..._

Eggman changed it back to Sonic's and stood. _No more of that. Ever._ He turned his attention to the restrained, unconscious hedgehogs. He'd have to get Shadow alone and question him about what he'd seen...


End file.
